Galneda's game Reviews on Newgrounds

[Exit Path]

Good time-killer!

The soundtrack was pretty awesome, my favorite probably being the Audit stage. It meshed nicely with the environment we get to run through. The environments themselves, were detailed nicely, while the character, despite the added "flair" seemed like just you're ordinary stick-figure.

As a challenging platformer, N-Game sort of came to mind, and how the author of that game took the stick figure, and altered the body parts into geometric shapes to add distinction. I'm all for our stick figure being customized into ANY of the selections from the Flash Color palette...but leg-warmers? lol. I was about to enter multiplayer mode to see what you could unlock for the arms, but it being exclusively an ArmorGames feature deducted on the score for this particular flash.

To elaborate, I'm not going to review a feature that's simply not here; that review would be for the COMPLETE version. If you wanted us to play multiplayer and all that fun stuff, I would prefer to do it here, where you've submitted it on NG. With multiplayer discluded, I feel as if this is a demo, or a half-finished game.

Moreover, there was a missed opportunity to implement the medal-system exclusive to the NG flash gaming community, but with the flair system already in place, I could understand how that could complicate things, so there's no deduction in my score for that lack of feature.

The rewinding vignette with the added motion trail of what you did was a VERY cool feature. Which is good, because we're inevitably going to be dying a lot, and it keeps things rapid. It doesn't disrupt the flow of the game, and the only annoyance experienced was from the actual mistake in dying; not the process of respawning...thank you for checkpoints! lol

By my third run-through, I was collecting signs. One of which seemed impossible to get to (the one where it's an open stretch, a double headed laser cannon in the beginning, and two or three more after it, with tiny blocks to disrupt the laser's tracking. The sign seemed to be up on a floating platform that seemed inaccessible.) and another which I couldn't seem to find at all, but I'm assuming you would need all of them to achieve whatever secret you had in store for us...perhaps just unlocking some more hats, but oh well. By my third run-through, it had become a little easy...yes, segments that involved multiple axes swinging in one spot still proved to be incredibly frustrating, despite identifying the pattern as to when to run and jump, but it seemed to lose it's replay value by that time.

I still shaved off a good sliver of time on it, though...and as a game it was pretty tasty. Still, it just could've used more. More detailed characters (as in, NOT sticks) more interactive environments, more potentially lethal threats, even added manueverability could've helped; there were many opportunities where a ledge grab would've saved my life, or just made things easier. The flow system was intuitive in how you had to have a running start to get that super-sprint going, but I think there were only very few moments where that was actually necessary or helpful to engage. THAT could've been elaborated upon, or even if it allowed the flow system to do something else...like a wall-jump.

Again. Good run-through playing it, but I expect bigger and greater things in an Exit Path 2. Fived!

[Super Mario Crossover]

....

This is the happiest.....I have ever been.....playing a flash game........*wipes away tear* Playing as Mega Man in the first video game I've ever played...just....beautiful.

I will blow you now, sir. Castlevania, Contra, Mega Man...epic goddamn win...right down to their set of stage music.

What will your future projects entail? Original work, or more nostalgic hyper-badassery? You're like a mad scientist bearing wonderful gifts to the masses...keep up the impressive experiments that you do just for fun, and you could turn out to be the Flash Game equivalent to Tesla. Just don't let the popularity ever get to your head, and be wary of folks that seem like the equivalent to Thomas Edison :P

Fantastic experiment, brilliant premise, no bugs on my end...nothin' but joy!

You clearly have an excellent perception of what's fun. Don't change that focal point in your future submissions! Keep it fun, just like this game!

[Enough Plumbers]

Pretty brilliant, actually.

I began playing expecting an absolutely bland, blatant Mario rip-off that brought nothing new to the table. Instead, it was an interesting thought-provoking Mario rip-o-...err, parody...that brought an ASSLOAD of new to the table.

If Nintendo makes this the premise of their newest Mario game, first and foremost I'll be pissed because I saw it on NG first, but also I would be shocked, because the premise by itself is kind of dark for a kids game. Think about all the lives that were lost just to get to that flag...or that poor unfortunate fool left to rot at the bottom of that pit just to open up a switch...The mental scarring on a child's perspective on the futility of life for a clone could last for ages...

...But to hell with the kids! This game is actually a lot of fun! It may not be 100% original, but I sure as hell haven't played a game like it. Some of it reminds me of Lemmings, which I loved the hell out of when I was a kid, and it also reminded me of...err...what's it called, played it all the time as a kid..."Super Maliable Brothers?" I forget, it wasn't that big of a game anyway...but the inverted mushrooms, the Willy-Wonka soda pop feature, the concrete suit...the powerups are all very intriguing! That, and the trial-and-error the player has to go through always somehow leads to a satisfying end once the stage is complete...I guess it's that cheerful "Yahoo!" as the Plumber Clone flies by.

...which....wait a minute....could any one of those little guys just up and fly whenever they want to? That would kind of make the game pointless and all of those lost lives unjustified. I guess we'll just ignore the superpowered elephant in the room and keep going with this review. lol

While only a couple of medals, I don't think it really needs any more than that. The criteria of each isn't too horribly demanding, but a dedicated gamer could sit down, beat this with 100% completion and move on. That could hurt it's replay-value which could also reflect on it's...ohh I'll cut the bullshit....this game was fun! I had a blast! It looked great! Sounds great! Played great-great-GRATE-great-gret-gloop-gr eat.

If you were to work on a sequel, that would be pretty baller. Voted 5! Thanks for the entertainment!

[Fatherly Bonds Da Game]

A Programming Disaster

Lochie fucked the game over, but Archer didn't come close to save it; your animating ability has improved over the years, but it wasn't demonstrated in this. Your graphical craftsmanship with flash games is also superb as demonstrated via Toss the Turtle, but again, wasn't demonstrated in this. If I played Toss the Turtle before I played this and didn't know any better, I would have assumed Turtle came out years AFTER this was plopped down, hoping you had trekked a path of steady progression.

There were cuts, there were mis-communications, and undependable help that plagued this project...but there was nothing redeemable about it upon submission; as a time-killer, it was more a time-waster...beating up nameless antagonists from the successful flash short of last year should be a fun, violent, invigorating experience, taking command of the brutal yet powerful Dad. For something based off of a pretty epic flash and what was probably inspired by Double Dragon/Paladin's "Dad n Me" games, instead of becoming awesome fell COMPLETELY short.

We're aware of the story from Fatherly Bonds, but we get none of that here...absolutely no flesh whatsoever. It's actually kind of impolite from gaming standards to just toss you into the middle of it all the instant you hit play...and another thing! Having to hold down the key symbol to figure out how to play is just tacky.

The combos the player performs are boring immediately after you've seen it twice, and the special ability, ala spinning in place, can only seem to be executed once. There's no apparent difference between the scrawny masked minions and the juiced up giant minions in how much damage they take, and the background environments, although attempting to switch it up to keep it from getting boring, completely fail to do so, because NOTHING. HAPPENS.

...How else can I say it than "this wasn't fun." The little thumbs-up screen with the score, ad, and "Proceed" button disrupt the pace of an already boring beat-em-up that doesn't seem to toss anything new, familiar, or entertaining for the player.

-What of a plot.
-What of powerups.
-What of a block function.
-What of a jump button
-What of different combo's
-What of more enemies
-What of weapons
-What of throws
-What of interactive environments
-What of ENVIRONMENTS for that matter
-What of animated sequences if there wasn't enough time to construct strips of land in between fights

I mean COME ON, you make it abundantly clear you love the fuck out of Double Dragon and Battletoads among other genuinely interesting games, so clearly it wasn't from a lack of vision that left out many gameplay elements that could've saved this thing. Lochie may have failed you, but Archer failed you as well...there's too much wrong with this game and not enough right, but I hope that you walked away from the experience a wiser man.

Get ye a programmer you can depend on...you're a recognized face on NG, so it shouldn't be so hard! lol

Gonzossm responds:

Believe me its hard to find a dependable coder. 90% seem to be douche bags <_< I was lucky to evan get this out here for u guys :P evan if its small. Thanks for the review. :P

[SteamBirds]

Phenomenal!

I had a blast with this game! A turn-based top-down dog-fighting strategy game was a brilliant idea on it's own, and this game delivered! Weighing in on a lofty 2.2 MB, it's a pretty breezy load even on my friend's laptop.

Before even playing the game, I have to compliment the musical arrangement. It fits the game like a glove setting the perfect World War 2 era epic mood. On top of that, it cycles out several tracks to provide the player with diversity! Not once did the music get annoying...it's actually pretty intense! Wonderfully arranged.

The premise of an alternate reality WWII is a familiar and flexible one for the gaming community. To hell with the technology that seems to take the challenge and skill out of war; this was the romantic era, with skilled pilots leading pilots against pilots. The way how the stage was set up to look like a map was a good touch, as geographic markers representing mountains provided a nice texture to the game, but didn't seem to represent anything more than a cosmetic feature.

Moreover, in the 1939 stage (I'm going to mentioning it a lot) there's no distinguished border, or indication that you're about to leave the map. Once the selection arrow for your plane extends beyond the map's border, you've lost that fighter. There needs to be some kind of heads-up or method of prevention to keep your fighters in the area of operations.

The game IS challenging...but that's what kept me coming back! Some of those missions are seemed impossible to go through without taking hits, but with experience it IS possible. The only one I can't, for the life of me, get anything above two stars is that blasted 1939; equipped with two shield birds, one U-turn and one boost, against two Darts. The bastards can outrun and maneuver you, and although it is possible to beat the stage, I can't find a way to do it unscathed. I'm close to just accepting it can't be done. The other two I'm working on are the only others I haven't achieved four stars in; the 1946 and '47 missions...I've come close to four stars each time I've tried, but some plane of mine somehow grazes some gas or something. I'll get those two soon, and everything else has four stars (I'm apparently the Marshal of the RAF.) but that DAMNED 1939 MISSION! One day....one day.......

Though I'm frustrated, it's a sporty gamer frustration; programming is solid on my end with little or no bugs! Every once and a while trying to click or drag a selection arrow for one of my guys doesn't want to budge at first, but with persistence gives in, and every once and a while I'll accidentally hit the wrong one because I have my guys fly in tight formations, but all-in-all it's nothing to really complain about. The game is good solid fun.

It would be nice to have the ability to equip your birds with specific abilities, but again, no biggie; having to use what you got is a part of the challenge. I also wish there were more levels available here on Newgrounds. But if what you say is true in expanding game modes, introducing new items, and a MULTIPLAYER (holy shit) I'm eager to try it out for myself!

Still, there's ALWAYS room for improvement why not include:
-Voice Overs
-Altitude adjustments indicated by shadows and unit lighting, or alternatively letters? (L-Low, M-Mid, H-High) and gas could gradually sink after two turns
-Ground fixtures (AA guns, Flak cannons, targets for bombing runs either to attack or defend)
-Bodies of water to mix it up from the OD green
-...which could introduce Aircraft Carriers and Battleships, frigates...a Navy?
-When highlighting a unit, have a highlighted cone or circle that indicates their firing radius? On numerous occasions through my playtime that would've been most useful

I can't stress this enough; everyone involved really constructed a solid, fun gameplay experience. I've told my friends about it and they loved it, we have a blast with this thing. When I eventually do conquer all of the missions here, I'm going to hit up the bonus missions without a doubt. Looking forward to expansions/sequels! Fived and Fav'd! Good job!

[Keyboard Mayhem]

A hit!

I had a LOT of fun playing this. I like to think of myself as a pretty skilled typist, but this game is pretty challenging! I dunno how I beat Skitz after countless retries, but it's kicking my ass with a vengeance now that I'm going after the score-related medals.

It took me a while to connect that the score is multiplied by how much time is left. Hell, starting out I wasn't even aware there WAS a time-limit...yeah, it's right there in the corner, but in my previous run-through I never had to pay attention to it. Just type the words and off you go! It's fast-paced and goofy...that's why the music is absolutely perfect for the feel of the game.

It's a fun rapid typing exercise! I'm ruing the day that I ignored my teacher in using the proper finger for C, X, and Z....but I'm making it by...the highest I've scored so far was 13,985 (I was frustrated it didn't go a little higher) but the medals provide some sort of goal to give it replay value...I've gotta earn me a J. Fox...though just breaking that 14K boundary is hella challenging by itself.

I love how the character throws only the most random shit at our goofy antagonist. This game was just fun all around for me, and that's why I'm giving it a ten, and I'll vote five each time I pay a visit to earn a Marty McFly medal.

Keep up the great work! You say in your description that this game was better than it's predecessor, so clearly you're on the right track!

[Neon Rider]

Very fun!

ParagonX9 always delivers pretty intense video game music, and it felt right at home with the style of the game. Though only by the time I had finished the last level and reviewed tracks that either didn't have time on them at all (for some reason) or I felt I had taken too long to complete, it did get a little annoying. The game's filesize isn't that high at all, so I would recommend having multiple tracks that cycle out to keep it fresh.

Moreover, though the background did seem to immerse us in a Tron-like, cybernetic training grid, it seemed a little boring to me...and I kind of wished there was an environment to back it up. It's not a necessary detail, mind-you, as the two grids in the background did succeed in providing the illusion of movement, but it's something you could do to go one step beyond in terms of immersion.

The bike looked cool as hell! With the color-trails turned on, doing 8x somersaults off a cliff, looks intense! The suspension system on it really gives the player a feel for how it'll react if you lean in certain directions, which help tremendously in handling the very unique terrain in the game. Though I have to complain that on many occasions I found myself terminally locked in an upright position dragging the tail behind, it's merciful that the tail extends that far so you're 90 degrees up instead of a position where you CAN'T recover by leaning forward...that part of the design is great, but sometimes it takes damage rapidly, and other times I'll drag the tail for yards and I won't take anything more than a scratch.

For this, I think if you added a grinding noise or sound effect to indicate when the bike is taking damage. Sometimes the underside will be taking damage and it won't be completely obvious. A sound effect to indicate the damage would only be helpful to the player.

Additionally, there are barely any sound effects in hear at all. The power-up pickup and a few button-related noises and the music...that's it. What about an engine noise? Subtle braking or suspension noise? Tire impacts for when you land hard or glide into the terrain softly? Or to add a dash of immersion, a sound effect indicating color change? Something electrical sounding for each color?

It's a pretty solid game and it's fun to run-through at least once; there's little replay value here. I wanted to see if there was a high score system to see where I stood among the hundreds of thousands before me who've played, but I didn't see any incentive to achieve more and achieve higher than just the player's lone justification. There's no map editors, no customization...just these handful of levels, and that seems to be it.

Though it is very challenging. I was frustrated when I would change in the transition of a different road, and my rear (or sometimes even front) tire would be stuck in the middle, forcing me to die or start over, but that's a part of the challenge. You have to multitask as you go along quick, keeping an eye on the road and an eye on the minimap, and then you find yourself having to memorize the color-switching keys so you can proceed to win. It was very tricky, and it required a lot of trial-and-error (thank you for leaving the legend of the color switch on the HUD), but I'll admit it was fun and exhilarating once I had it down.

I somehow especially enjoyed the boot-up scan reading at the beginning of each stage, but that's the only time we saw cool looking readouts like that. Why not do something similar for damages or stage-clears?

I voted 5. This was well deserving for the Daily 1st, but I would be less hesitant of any weekly awards due to the lack of replay value. Great concept! No bugs on my end. Keep up the great work!

[Paper Warfare]

Fun, but unacceptable.

What started off as a fun horizontal flying shooter, ended on a catastrophic lock-down.

Between the three starting exo-suits, I chose the balanced one, and although allowing users the option between them initially, I don't see why it's necessary to disclude the option to switch out with other models in between sorties.

The middle-type was swift, and brutal. The only weapons I dealt with eventually were the spread-shot and the Assaulter, as it replaced the initial three-shot burst. I was disinterested in a flame-thrower because the concept escapes me for this premise;

Think about it. You're flying. Your opponents are all flying, with long range armaments...surely there are more effective short-ranged weaponry to the imagination than a simple flamethrower.

I couldn't proceed any further, however, because by level four or five, the screen was so flooded with enemies and laser ordinance that it jutted the game to a near grinding halt. At first, armed with the Assaulter, I was maneuvering around them pretty firmly, then I started to take on more hits as the sky was filling with clouds of dust and red energy...I applied my sheild, and that staved off the attacks at first, until the entire, non-exaggerated SCREEN WAS FILLED TO THE BRIM with enemies and their disdainful lasers.

The lag held it at probably five frames per second if that... I attempted to adjust the quality to no avail; why is there no quality control for something like this, which you being the designer of the game, had to have seen would be an issue with most computers? I turned off the music, and I even flipped off my shield...a whole ten seconds later, and my health began to chop down to zero, and then immediately filled again; I could not die.

I attempted to chop upwards and hold down the trigger, in a feeble effort to at least TRY to clear the screen of this flood, but that too failed...and my patience had worn thin. Here I am, stuck in limbo, constantly looping in health while I laid waste to a swarm of enemies that killed me by slowing down time.

I don't have the best computer, but I certainly have far from the worst. It can handle intensely demanding flash games and PC games alike with ease, and yet this game seems to conquer it by means of over-exhertion.

It could have been a very enjoyable experience had it not been for the flooding that grounded the frame-rate to a halt. From the looks of at least a few of these reviews below me, that may be a deciding factor in your score.

It had potential, but refine it...and possibly avoid using words like "coz" instead of "because"

[Falling Boxes]

133!

Often times I found myself looming around the 55-60 mark because when I miss one, I'd overcompensate, and start missing others. I found that I had greater manueverability with the stylus to my tablet as opposed to a mouse, and it was STILL challenging.

Really simple, clean game with a clear goal. I like how it saves your high score, for the highest you ever reached in that play-through, so when you lagged back to 20, and you just give up to say "fuckit" you can still submit the highest you've ever gone. I'm amazed some Swedish kid got to the 2,000s when the highest I could possibly go was 120-133.

You zone out in this game, because if you were to concentrate too hard, you'll start missing. I found myself dazed, as my hand and the stylus just kept with the fall pattern, which oddly enough, seemed to go with the music very well.

I also appreciate that when you miss a box, you get that little "choom" sound effect. It's helpful, because the player can just keep their eyes on the screen and acknowledge that they missed one, and try to fix whatever they did wrong that caused that miss.

The only thing I would fix is if you had reached a high score, missed a couple and are trying to catch up, if your score succeeds in passing your high score, I think it would be cool if the high score number changed color and faded each time it was added. Nothing distracting, but a subtle change in color so the player can acknowledge they're reaching new heights in their peripheral vision, and still concentrate on the game.

Moreover, I would try to collaborate with the guy that made this track into doing a soundtrack. What I mean by that is this...

...Backing up just a little bit before I get to my main point, I love that the box launcher is merciful enough to base it's rate of speed on the player's current score. That was a great call. Now, what I mean is, say you're at score "0-50" You could get Nighthawk22 to do a track that's at the pace of the box launcher...ominous, same-style as "Hyperdestructive" but slower. Then "50-100" seamlessly fades into a track that's a little faster. "100-150" is a track that's REALLY intense, and "150+" is epic as hell. All of which seamlessly lock into one another, so when you plummit through missing box after box, it isn't an awkward transition from "EPIC OMG YOU'RE AT 200!" to "Start over, bitch. Bahahahaa"

Not only will this psychologically get the player more engaged at the game, but they would rarely have to even take their eyes off the stage, because they can listen to where they're at, and they can see in their peripheral vision if they've breached their high score yet.

Moreover, it couldn't hurt to have a subtle, non-distracting background other than flat black. You could also collaborate with an artist to change up the sphere, pyramid, and boxes...but it's totally up to you.

It's a great game, and I was addicted to it through my play. Keep up the good work!

[M-Bot The Game]

Ran out of room in the review space...again.

For starters, on a game that has looping sound on the preloader, it's always a good idea to have a button that toggles mute (ESPECIALLY if it's a huge filesize, where the player will be subjected to it for a prolonged amount of time.) The music loop wasn't particularly annoying to me, but it's always a conscientious option, as there are some who would disagree.

One way around it, though, since you have our control options there, with our protagonist chasing an antagonist, is you could use the preloader space to provide us with an interactive warm-up of a minigame. But a mute button would be easier to program to accommodate the whiners. :P

The control scheme with the mouse takes a little getting used to. But once you learn to concentrate on the red line-of-sight, it gets a little easier. It's a recurring theme throughout the game where it's pivotal to your survival to know exactly where on the street your player is, and that's tricky to get a hang of since the camera is terminally side-scroller on a plane that contains depth. It would be merciful for us if the angle was viewed higher, looking down at the player...or if you REALLY wanted to be expiremental with flash, take from Einhander, an underrated Playstation 3D side scroller, and consistently switch up the perspectives, while never taking away from the fact that it's a side scroller.

The point of view makes it difficult to navigate with the mouse when the landmines came in. Instinctively, I wanted to switch play-styles without losing progress I've gained, so I seeked out the pause button for the menu. The "P" for pause was there, but it simply froze the game. It would be a great feature to have a menu where you could swap out play-styles without disrupting the whole game...like say you've tried keyboard and decided you wanted to give mouse a try.

It wasn't until the barrier section that I finally figured out that the health was indicated with the score, and similar to Da Pink Knight, also parallelled with what power ups you were granted. It's a good system that rewards the player with incentive to keep as shiny and untouched as possible, but it's not clearly established. Like even just an arrow that laid it straight for us at the very beginning WHILE we're getting used to the controls would've sufficed. "See this? This is your score. The more you got, the beefier you get. Don't let it drop to zero. Off you go." dusts off it's hands and let's you play the game.

*sigh*...I'm going to run out of review space...this review window's open WHILE I'm playing.

The music is actually pretty awesome. It gets you pumped, and it's remeniscent of arcade games, especially with the inclusion of dynamic sound effects that almost seem to be a part of the remix of the song you're listening to. Like the "Honk...Honnnk" going with the beat, and the whiplashes and shit. It only adds to the awesome. However, since it's ABSOLUTELY important to pay attention to where the red line-of-sight is, it keeps your eyes off of your character and the score-board more often than not. When you take damage, the little "Kzzzkkt" is barely audible when you take a hit. There were also missed opportunities for the jet-boost noise, and the gun SFX on the double-barrelled powerup don't match with the rate of fire...in other words; there are some SFX that are just right, but there are others that need to catch up to par with the appropriate ones.

Visually, I was taken off guard by the visuals. You had submitted 3D material as early as 2003, and it shows you've been pumping some polygonal iron. I was immediately reminded of Einhander, stated earlier, with the immersive bridge/tunnel thing the character had to pass through early on. While I already mentioned my beef with the fixed POV, the wall/barrier sequence was a little disorientating at first with the collision detection of the character. Sometimes it felt like a coin toss, and other times I accept responsiblity for being too slow to get to the weak-point. But everything looks great! I especially like the epic power-up vignettes.

Great Expirement! 5

MindChamber responds:

Thanks for the awesome review. This 3D rendered stuff is definitely something I've been holding near and dear to me for many years. its definitely a novel ideas thats became anitquited over the years. Back in 03 it seems so revolutionary, I had plans to do heroes of cybertron2, STagger, even wheelman. but as you can see they all fell by the waistside because I just couldnt find that balance between detail and filesize. In fact I never did, which is why all those projects were backburned. That is why i felt the need even finish one thing like this. The good news is Flash CAN do 3D and someday I will be able to use real 3D and not just prerended, and have a decent filesize to boot!. but yeah thanks for noticing..

I do agree with you there isnt enough info on how to play the game, I was much more thorough with Baron and to a degree pink knight. I just felt no matter how much material I put out, no one really reads it, and its imperative that the game is as intuitive as possible. And as you can see it isnt always easy. but I will keep trying harder to make the readability of the game from beginning to end.

I agree about the mute button AND the minigame. orginally the pixel art in the beginning was supposed to be an interactive tutorial, but this game had been delayed so many times, and schedules are so hectic that we just wanted it out by the time we saw the finish line.
not trying to make excuses, just saying you are right about that and we knew about it. :)

also yeah an isometic view of the game wouldve ruled!

thanks for the review